Method of polishing wax



Patented Sept. 7 1937 which or POLISHING wax Mack Wilson, Washington, D. 0., assignor or one- .r 'to Joseph E. Stacey,;Dorchester, I v 1 rawingi Application..March 16,1931, r

I: 1 Serial No. 1 1,269,

10 the case of the socalledself-polishing Waxes) to expend considerable energy in rubbing the,wax, either manuallyor by machine, in order to produce the hard," bright finish or polish desired. For example, it'gis well known that inspolishing automobile bodies; by'far, thegreatest portion of the time and labor rejqu'iiedfis utilizedinpolishmg the'wajxafter it is applied. Not only is this polishingoperationa long andlaborious one, but

. it'a'lso results in theactua l removal by the polishi'ng-cloth "or other instrument irom the surface being treatejdoi. a substantial amount of thewax originally applied 0 leaving the 'surface, with a thinner layer of wax thereon than might otherwise be obtained. Thewax. thus removed is not only wastedbut alsocontaininates the cloth or other polisher making it necessary to. replace or clean thesame at frequentintervals;

It is thereforeone of the objects of the present invention to provide'a. novelmethod. of polishing wax as applied to various kinds of surfaces which will effect a substantial savingfi'n the time,.labor and expense involved inproducing the fine, high gloss or luster desired. r

fAnotherobject i m pm detsiapavedi pro;

cedure for'waxing and polishing 'suriaees which will leave on the surface in polishedtform a greater proportien of the amount otwax applied thereto thanremainsfaiter the mererubbing op- 1 erationheretofore pfacticedgand which therefore 40 requiresless wax for the same thickness of coat andless frequent replacement or cleaning of the polishing utensils. 7, w Afurtherobject is to provide a new method of bringing waxedsurfaces to a br ht P lish which is not only quicker, less laborious and less expensive, but also produces a'finer and morelasting finish, than the procedures previously followed. "It hasbeen discovered that; these. and other J hbjectawhich will appear more fully upon considerationof the following description of the invention, maybe attained by a procedurewhichis' characterized primarily by the use of a dry,jcom-- minuted or powdered material of the vegetable kingdom as the wax polishing agent.

Vfunction to some degree as wax polishing agents, it has beenfound that the desired results are best (attained by the use of a hour, mealrortpowdered starch formed from one or more of the group of vegetable substances comprising wheat, corn, rye, barley, oats, potatoesand wood. In using 'the term fflourfasapplied to these substances it is intended to include the pulverizedfibrous constituents thereof as well as. the finely ground starchy constituents; .for example, powdered wood, such as results from asanding operation thereof, and pulverized straw areboth suitable for use in the present method. 0f these various substances, however, wheat flour, corn flour and corn starch, either separately or any combination thereof, are preferred Excellent results have been obtained by the use of a powder consisting entirely or a high grade wheat flour. While these substances may [be used in their ordinary powdered state with full effect asiar' as their polishing action is concerned, it is often desirable ,for commercial reasonsto add to the powder suitablefquantities of coloring and flavoring orperr fuming substances.

In carrying out the methodocihsisn vention, the suri'ace to be treated is first coated with wax in the usual manner, it being understoodthat any; suitable liquid, cream or paste polishing wax maybe used, other than a self polishing wax. Immediately after application'of the wax, a small quantity ofcomminuted or pow dered polishing material is sprinkled over the wax and also upon a .clothor. other suitablepolishing instrument which is then used to rub the powder over the waxuntil the, desired degree of p olish is obtained. The powder is then removed in any suitable manner as by dusting ;with a clean cloth, anair blast or a vacuuni cleaner. 1

' The exact manner in which thepowder Ifunc. tions to produce the unusually fine polish resulting from this' procedure is notknown," although itihas beenobserved that very little wax is IQ-3 moved from the surface" being treated during'the polishing operation and that whateveramount is removed ,does not appear to be absorbed by or deposited, on the cloth orother polishing instrument to any noticeable extent. In this connecnotonly bythe use'oi anyof the knownpolishing instruments such as cloths, woolenfpolishers, polisher mitts and polisher machines, but alsoby employing soft paper or even the humanhand;

this result is apparently due to the fact that the polishing instrument, whatever it may be,;serves only as a carrier for the powder which is the real polishing agent.

In using the powdered polisher as above described, a relatively light coat thereof sprinkled over the wax will ordinarily suffice; for example, five ounces of a high grade wheat flour powder will polish the wax on the surfaces of eight average sized automobile bodies or an equivalent area of other surfaces. Although the method of the present invention requires an expenditure for the powder used, the savings effected in the cost of labor and polishing materials far exceed the added cost of the powder. As a result of time studies made at a number of automobile'service stations, it has been established that the present method saves between 50% and of the time required for polishing wax, and at the same time enables the work to be done with far less expenditure of energy since under ordinary conditions a relatively light rubbing is all that is required. Another advantage of this method is that it is possible thereby to bring wax to a polish even though it has become dry before the polishing operation is begun, whereas this is practically impossible of accomplishment by the ordinary method of merely rubbing the wax with a cloth or the like.

There is thus provided by the present invention a novel and highly useful method of polishing wax which is quicker, easier, less expensive and productive of better results than the procedures heretofore employed for the same purpose. While the method of the invention is particularly well adapted to the polishing of-automobile bodies, it is equally useful in the treatment of all kinds of surfaces to which wax may be applied, such as floors, furniture, woodwork, linoleum, machinery, shoes and other leather and imitation leather articles. Likewise, it will be obvious that tne invention is applicable to the polishing of all kinds of waxes, whether liquid, cream or paste, excluding only the so-called self-polishing waxes.

In the foregoing description of the invention a number of different substances have been specifled asuseful'in forming the powdered polishing agent employed in the method. While all of these substances have been tested and found operative, it is realized that there may be other materials which are also capable of use and should be included within the scope of the invention. It should also be recognized that the manner in which the polishing powder is applied to and rubbed over the wax is subject to variation without exceeding the limits of the invention; for example, it is contemplated that the powder may be marketed in a cloth bag, rather than in an ordinary can or other container, and that the bag may serve both aslthe source of powder and as the instrument by which the powder is rubbed over the wax to effect the polishing. Various other modifications, which will now occur to those skilled in the art, may be made in the details of procedure and means employed in practicing the same without departing from the spirit of theinvention. Reference is therefore to be had to the appended claims for a definition of the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is: 1

l. A method of polishing-surfaces by the use of wax comprising the steps of applying a coating of wax to the surface to be treated, applying to the surface of the wax a dry, comminuted vegetable material, and then rubbing the said mate- 2. A method of polishing surfaces by the use of wax comprising the steps of applying a coating of wax to the surface to be treated, applying to the surface of the wax a powder the ingredients of which are selected from the group of vegetable substances consisting of wheat, corn, rye, barley, oats, potatoes. and wood, and then rubbing the said powder over the surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced.

3. A method of polishing surfaces by the use of wax comprising the steps of applying a coating of wax to the surface to be treated, applying to the sur ace of the wax a flour or meal formed from one or more of the group of vegetable substances consisting of wheat, corn, rye, barley, oats, potatoes and wood, and then rubbing the said flour or meal over the surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced.

4. A method of polishing surfaces by theuse of wax comprising the steps of applying a coating of wax to the surface to be treated, applying to the surface of the wax a pulverized fibrous vegetable material, and then rubbing the said material over the surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced.

5. A method of polishing surfaces by the use of wax comprising the steps of applying a coating of wax to the surface to be treated, coating the surface of said wax with a pulverized woody material, and then rubbing the said material over the surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced.

6. A method of polishing surfaces by the use of wax and a polishing instrument such as a cloth comprising the steps of applying a coating of wax to the surface to be treated, applying to the surface of the wax a coating of comminuted vegetable material, applying a similar coating of said material to the polishing instrument, and then rubbing the coated instrument over the coated surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced. I

'7. A method of polishing surfaces by the use of wax and a polishing instrument such as a cloth comprising the steps of applying a coating of wax to the surface to be treated, applying to the surface of the wax a coating of comminuted vegetable material, applying a similar coating of said material to the polishing instrument, rubbing the coated instrument over the coated surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced, and then removing from the polished surface of the wax whatever amount of said material remains thereon.

8. A method of imparting a polish to wax comprising the steps of coating the surface of the wax with a dry, finely divided vegetable material, and then rubbing the said material over the surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced.

9. A method of imparting a polish to wax comprising the steps -of sprinkling the surface of the wax with a powdered starchy material, and then rubbing the said material over the surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced.

10. A method of imparting a polish to wax comprising the steps of coating the surface of the wax with wheat flour, applying a coating of said flour to a polishing instrument such as a cloth, and then rubbing the coated instrument over the coated surface of the wax until the desired polish is produced.

MACK WILSON. 

